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Saturday, September 18, 2010

United States Joint Forces Command Warns that Huge U.S. Debt Might Lead to Military Impotence, Default or Revolution

As I have repeatedly pointed out, the American military and intelligence leaders say that debt is the main national security threat to the U.S.

As I noted in February 2009 and again last December, a number of high-level officials and experts are warning of financial crisis-induced violence ... even in developed countries such as the U.S.

And as I pointed out in February of this year, the U.S. runs the risk of going the way of the Habsburg, British or French empires:

Leading economic historian Niall Ferguson recently wrote in Newsweek:

Call the United States what you like—superpower, hegemon, or empire—but its ability to manage its finances is closely tied to its ability to remain the predominant global military power...

This is how empires decline. It begins with a debt explosion. It ends with an inexorable reduction in the resources available for the Army, Navy, and Air Force...

If the United States doesn't come up soon with a credible plan to restore the federal budget to balance over the next five to 10 years, the danger is very real that a debt crisis could lead to a major weakening of American power.

The precedents are certainly there. Habsburg Spain defaulted on all or part of its debt 14 times between 1557 and 1696 and also succumbed to inflation due to a surfeit of New World silver. Prerevolutionary France was spending 62 percent of royal revenue on debt service by 1788. The Ottoman Empire went the same way: interest payments and amortization rose from 15 percent of the budget in 1860 to 50 percent in 1875. And don't forget the last great English-speaking empire. By the interwar years, interest payments were consuming 44 percent of the British budget, making it intensely difficult to rearm in the face of a new German threat.

Call it the fatal arithmetic of imperial decline. Without radical fiscal reform, it could apply to America next.

And William R. Hawkins (formerly an economics professor at Appalachian State University, the University of North Carolina-Asheville, and Radford University) fills in some details on the fall of the Hapsburg empire:

25 comments:

If Mao was still alive would he encourage the Tea Party Movement?Are these People the “Red guards” or a White army of restorationist dreamers for a bankrupt militarist America? A reactionary useless impossible attempt to try return to the past system after the old economic conditions of living, the old lifestyles have already been changed ? The Tea partiers are against overtaxing ‘big government” and waste but for keeping their own promised old Gold Card benefits. They threaten a cultural revolution in economics.With A Gingrich style “ new contract” with America. Mao reckoned it was all about class struggle. The last losing battle Mao fought was to turn the people loose , especially the “Red guard” youth against the bureaucrats of his own political party ,those ‘top party persons in Authority” in the Party of big government, in control of Education ,Industry and agriculture. The number of bureaucrats in government departments was cut by half . Horror. Horror . Many were sent out to get a real productive job on the farms and on the factory floors. Kicked out of soft positions on the government payrolls. Horror horror. In the world of finance, when he died ,the government was without internal or external debt –that is, no more of a bondholder usury coupon clipping class. He called this a ‘necessary Cultural Revolution” for democracic rule to consolidate socialism. Americans are free to make their own cultural analysis of that movement ,its necessity and freedoms. But An insolvent capitalism and American debt Peons seeking freedom from debts, also have to make their own judgments on the relationship of freedom to necessity and whether ,the US economic crisis solution, requires a simple change in votes or real class struggle?

Most Americans believe in American Idle , a personal guardian angel,the “right” to unlimited cheap credit on their credit cards and believe that classes do not exist, let alone a need for class struggle! After all most have “joined the middle class” or get subsidies and food stamps from the state. Just like In bankrupt Cuban state capitalism. But living in Glorious Ponzi, free trade ,US capitalism on dollar hegemony supplied forever credit .

So, in the US it is Usury, Crony Casino capitalism and bi –partisan kleptomaniac - economics that rule. OK . Capitalism has run its natural course, competition led to monopolies and to the centralization of capital in the hands of a very small elite. That elite has its own cultural and military value necessities. The Elite and their owned MSM ,their banksters ,lobbyists have their own politician agents They “donated” for “freedom of speech” 600 million $for the Messiah 'peace" President alone last election. Now ,since the bi-partisan financial coup of state in treasury ,organized by Bush ,Bernanke, and blessed by Obama ,Mc.Cain and wall st., all or most future tax revenues must be diverted for bailouts ,socializing the losses of a failed capitalist Ponzi and for payments to the bondholders that own the governments “Public debt” especially past and Victory War Bonds . (A.K.A. Treasury bills).

The Tea party movement ,is by definition a movement of whining losers, because as long as those bailouts and money printing continue, there can be no money spare for paying the old levels of social security benefits or real value tax concessions, as government revenues fall and inflation from money printing creates no new physically wealth producing jobs or value. For the US, its either the continuation of welfare for the corporate state, the wall st and bondholders interests wars , or better “welfare” for the unemployed and social security.But, the government cannot afford to pay for both, despite the illusions of the Tea Party that , Yes we can ,or that a Republican ‘Austrian economics” version can restore the profitability of the Great Ponzi ,if we only elect the right politicos to ‘fix” it

Despite the absolvent outlook toward General Dung, 11:03 has some penetrating insights that most are clueless about even when delineated to them.

I have noticed the Tea Party and other Patriotic types tend to be at a loss of solutions. They tend to have a charge against Socialism. The irony is that the Socialists are those who own the media, banks, Hollywood, education system, and religions with an ulterior focus to extort money. In other words the socialists are the capitalists!

I can't seem to watch Beck much anymore, his view that Americans are waking up is a bit obtuse. Most people I see where I go can be put into three general categories:

Adults past 25:

1) The norm which are fat, dumb, overworked, angry, or with several children and a spouse who they can't get along with.

2) Junkies, druggies, and trailor trash.

For Youth:

1) The norm which are alcoholics, unable to put down their cell phones, can hardly read or spell at a third grade level, and often have divorced parents.

2) The rare which are well mannered, intelligent, and likely to be the only hope for salvation.

3) Young moms on Welfare who have boyfriends in jail while being pregnant with another child.

The people in the Tea Party might have honorable intentions, and I'm sure many of them are frustrated by the things they see like me. Unfortunately, the damage that has been done to this country is nigh impossible to even begin planning to mend. Hence the lack of drawn out solutions.

Put more Conservatives in office? That seems to be Rush Limbaugh's or Hannity's obsession. That's futile, utterly futile. Try I guess, by that rate we may have the majority become Conservative within 60 years. Well, then we'll have to interpolate new methods to keep up with the hastening destruction that seems to take an acceleration every few months now.

6:05the tea partiers are true americans? are u kidding me? the tea partiers are the republicans in new pajamas. tea partier like sarah palin is an idiot. who felt for this trick?the libertarians are true americans. people like ron paul, jesse the body ventura and john stossel. the libertarians need to create a party of their own instead of caususing with other political parties.

The Tea Party movement is dead…what the Ron Paul-Revolutionaries started was cleverly high jacked and manipulated by Beck, Palin, Rove etc. to serve their Fed Masters. What we perceive of TP today is exactly what the TPTB want…misdirection and false choice & hope. The illusion the TP can reinstate the “way things were” by electing RINO’s and false conservatives is the ultimate mirage created by our Puppet Masters. This country is starving for a 3rd or 4th party of true Constitutionalist, not New Order or Global Elitist. I once held my fellow Americans as the purveyors of the Constitution and Capitalism but today my optimism turns to skepticism when the 20 and younger crowd shrug their shoulders, turn on the IPod and simply spout anti-American propaganda they learn in high school and college. In spite of my recent remark… I’ll re-read our Founding Fathers and gain optimism as a minority group of a few idealist created the Greatest Experiment the world has ever seen, Less Government and Freedom of Choice. How a small nation founded mostly by Europe’s unwanted became the envy of the world. As a people, shortly we will be tested as never before…our misrepresentative have taken us down an unfamiliar path…remain vigilant my fellow Americans…the Second Revolution may be soon upon us!

If a non-benevolent UFO landed today in the Rose Garden bent on dissolving and conquering the U.S.A the first thing they would do is recruit all of Congress, the Executive Branch, the Justice Department, the Pentagon, and let things continue as they're going today.

I dare say they would nary have to fire a single photon torpedo as they would still get the same result.

The Tea Party is nothing but the racist, white wing of the republican party. A bunch of old, whiney white racists that said nothing when bush started two wars based on lies, basically bankrupting the country, when he smashed the constitution, the racists again said nothing as the non patriot act took away our rights forever, why did they remain silent, when everything they say they are for now, they did nothing about then? Because they are hypocrit racists above all.

9.41 you are idiot what do you do when Bush was doing everything. Oh that right sit of you fat ass and did nothing. So now the Tea Party formed to rein Government spending and you called them Racist. You are too stupid to vote. What proof do you have the tea party is racist oh nothing but MSNBC told you what to think. People standing up to the idiot Obozo running the country into the ground and you called them Racist I am sick and tired of you whiny adolescent screechers grow up. Stop being a little tiny parrot boy for MSNBC.

The moron that first comment you like MAO so much move the hell out of this country. You are what is wrong with this country another adolescent screechers. You want jobs then stop of the Eco Nazi from killing jobs in this country we can't drill for oil on land why the Eco Nazi closed off the land. Can't cut timber why cause the Eco Nazi used a Fake Endangered owl to kill logging can't farm in CA cause the Eco Nazi said some useless worthless minnow was more important then jobs. You want solution their it is now get off your fat lazy ass and do something about it. You are the racist dimwits parrots that cause the problem to begin with.

The teabagger freaks are nothing but terrorists and racists. They take their marching orders from the same big corporations that are ruining the country, from Mcdeath, Monsatan, Military Industrial Murderers, Rush Dimbulb, Drug addict and nut case Glen Berserk. Your fake teabag party is nothing but a racist front of the right wing loon religious freak party.

The worst terrorist attack in American history occurred under GW. In 2005 GW pushed for more Low Income Housing." (google "Bush Low income housing".) Republicans rewrite that as "reigning in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac." The economy collapsed under GW. Housing collapsed under Republicans. General Motors, Chrysler, AIG, WAMU collapsed under Republicans.... yep... we definitely need more Republicans running the economy... oh I know... Obama hasn't cleaned up the katrina left by GW yet, so it's his fault!

Waving the Mao flag ,as expected ,got the usual mindless responses of the conditioned blind bulls of superior American capitalism ,abuse ,so as to avoid any discussions of problems in US capitalism or class. The thinking of these kind of people exists only in a world of their own Ideologies and sexual fantasy scandal problem hypocrisy, that they mistake for economic reality. Apart from the usual abuse ,they have no real solutions for the economic crises caused by a lack of profitability in America today . Their usual main argument is around the volume of printing or not printing paper and fantasies of increased circulation and turnover of money , that will save America from “big government” waste.But, is Marxist class analysis, basically the analysis of profit flows from the movement of capital ,at all relevant in America today ?Marxism primarily concerns itself with the ownership of the means of production and wealth distribution and seeks to resolve any class problems with socialism.It claimed that there is a principle contradiction between the property- less proletariat and the capitalist class. The Marxists claim that exploited proletariat still exists in the poor third world. But ,An exploited property- less proletariat clearly does not exist in the US today. The unemployed get welfare benefit handouts greater than the wages values in the third world. But Marxism also says a middle class also exists and that there are other contradictions between the different interests of all these classes in society. So, how has capitalism, imperialism and its drive for profit played out its revolutionary role in America internally ?What kind of an economy is America now ?Under Globalist economics ,free trade now operates an international division of labor.Production for profit is now carried out in the Third World. And as long as the great credit Ponzi and dollar hegemony system lasted ,Third World commodity profits were realized in the first world in the shopping malls, with the supply of cheap low interest credit , a housing bubble boomed.BUT Americans ,NOTE WELL KEY POINT , have now been separated from their industrial means of production by US capital that has exported industry to the cheap labor third world . So the economy is 72% driven by consumption of wealth ,an economy unproductive of profitable ,industrial product , of physical wealth . A services based economy. Under the dollar hegemony system ,America exchanged printed paper for real physical commodities.And its middle class ,that no longer believe class exists , only consumers , cannot understand that with the collapse of the Ponzi economy , now that foreign credit supply and vendor finance is no longer freely available.Despite the massive printing of paper ‘stimulus” .Why their housing assets, the collatoral owned by the Banks is being seized. They think as consumers of credit that their problems must be caused by a wasteful “Big government” not by a lack of productivity in new material wealth of commodity goods with a real exchange value to the rest of the world.

Some even think that the problems are only the result of colluding bankster tricks gone wrong. But, the banks now will not pass out credit as in the good times because the consumers are already maxed out on credit and cannot even keep up their interest payments on past debts.

The old middle class is not a working class proletariat but middle class Dept Peons.But, to solve these problems Mao, might have said : Revolt! seize the means of production and control wealth distribution that flows from that! But as there is not much ‘means of production in de-industrialised America left to seize ,the anti –Maoists above are right to point to the irrelevance of Mao’s politics ,to bankrupt middle class American Debt Peons. Their middle class contradiction is after all with usury finance capital not industrial capital.

The Article says:"As I have repeatedly pointed out, the American military and intelligence leaders say that debt is the main national security threat to the U.S."

This turns facts on their head .A War gainst terrorism posing as "National security"

The biggest real threat to the Economic security of the American people is the national debt being created to serve the military sector and its wars.

This debt has been developing and getting regularly rolled over after decades of costly losing foreign wars against the third world.

Now this growing cost also includes huge pension guarantees and salaries of "homeland security" as the militarised sector grows.It is said that the number of "spies" ,academic researchers ,inteligence gatherers and security guards for the state ,now total 800,000 alone .

The cost of wages and the future pensions will be borne for decades to come.With growing unemployment the costs of welfare will mount up and must be financed even as government revenues fall ,by more deficit spending too.Creating a debt ridden third world style economy. With a hugely expensive military sector impoverishing its people.

Yet ,the militarised sector whines here that it is itself concerned that the growing national Debts threatens their own future welfare. Even though ,apart from bailouts ,the main source of that growing national debt is the military and its wars.In future ,as the cost mount ,the choice will be even more between paying for military debts or affording ordinary welfare.The tax bill for the taxpayers of paying the interest on the Treasuries bills /War bonds will be huge. But ,Support your local police pensions and support the conditions and pensions of good ol boys of the military.They deserve it.It will be your patriotic duty.As they play on your heartstrings and billfold.How many years of military service creates a lifetime military pension? The National debts of paying for all this militarism and wars to kill bin ladin and for other religious wars will be very tough to pay for and is playing a big part in helping to bankrupt America.

Why do some people insist on trying to befriend a dead homocidal manic/s who basically destroyed their peoples and booted them back into the stoneage for the next 200 years aka - where are maos people and country today?